The Ethics of Patriotism
A Conference at Dartmouth College
November 21, 2009
The purpose of this conference is to explore the moral significance of patriotism.
Do we have special obligations to members of our own political community, or do our obligations extend to all human beings equally? Should citizens feel affectionately toward one another, or does this inhibit our ability to think clearly about our moral duties? And finally, is there a way to defend the importance of civic loyalties and attachments without excusing nationalism, chauvinism, and war? Bringing together scholars from across the humanities and social sciences who share an interest in the relationship between politics and ethics, this conference will provide a forum for discussing these and related questions in a thoughtful, serious, and creative way.
This conference is free and open to the public. All sessions will be held in 3 Rockefeller Center, with overflow in 2 Rockefeller Center if needed. Support has been provided by the Daniel Webster Project, Nelson A. Rockefeller Center, Ethics Institute, Department of Government, Department of Philosophy, and Department of English. Their generosity is very much appreciated.
Click here for links to information about visiting Dartmouth.
For more information about this conference, please contact Michelle Tolman Clarke (michelle.t.clarke@dartmouth.edu).
9:00 - 10:30
Steven Johnston, Associate Professor of Government and International Affairs at the University of South Florida: “Night of the living patriotism”
William Galston, College Park Professor at the Maryland School of Public Policy and Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution: “In defense of a reasonable patriotism”
Discussant: Winifred Amaturo, Adjunct Professor of Political Science at Columbia University
10:45 - 12:15
James Ingram, Assistant Professor of Political Science at McMaster University: “When can cosmopolitans support patriotism?”
David Bromwich, Sterling Professor of English at Yale University: “On the love of our neighbor (but who is our neighbor?)”
Discussant: Lydia Moland, Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Colby College
1:30 - 3:00
Simon Keller, Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Victoria University of Wellington: “Worldly citizens: Anti-patriotism as a civic virtue”
Katja Vogt, Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University: “Is patriotism crazy? How the stoics think we should relate to cosmos and country”
Discussant: Thomas J. Donahue, Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Instituto de Investigaciones Filosoficas, UNAM
3:15 - 4:45
Russell Muirhead, Robert Clements Associate Professor of Democracy and Politics, Dartmouth College
Norma Thompson, Associate Director of the Whitney Humanities Center at Yale University
S. Sara Monoson, Associate Professor of Classics and Political Science at Northwestern University
David Thunder, Visiting Assistant Professor at the Matthew J. Ryan Center for the Study of Free Institutions and the Public Good, Villanova University
